Title

Author

Date of Conferral

2018

Degree

Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.)

School

Business Administration

Advisor

Godwin Igein

Abstract

The lack of manager's effective business strategies contributes to the failure of fast food businesses in Nigeria. The size of the fast food industry in Nigeria grows at the rate of 4% annually with rapid rate of return on investment. The annual value of the fast food business in Nigeria was N250 billion in 2015, which is approximately US$700 million. However, approximately 80% of fast food restaurants launched in Nigeria in 2014 failed to persist for longer than 5 years because of lack of survival strategies. Using the human capital theory, the purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the strategies managers of fast food business use to survive for longer than 5 years. Participants were purposely selected for their experiences implementing survival strategies in their fast food business that enabled them to persist longer than 5 years. Data were collected via face-to-face semistructured interviews with 5 managers of fast food restaurants and the review of organizational documents and online ratings of the fast food restaurants. Data were analyzed using inductive coding of phrases, word frequency searches, and theme interpretation. Three themes emerged: employee development and training improved customer service, effective management of resources and people lead to business survival, and healthy food choice attracted customers and increased revenue. The findings of this study might influence social change by providing strategies for fast food businesses in Nigeria to persist longer than 5 years. When businesses are growing and surviving, they become profitable and contribute to the prosperity of the owners, employees, communities, and the government. These findings may benefit businesses and individuals as they implement the findings from this study.